E3 2017: EA Play Wrap-Up

11. Jun, 2017

For the second year in a row EA has kicked off the E3 2017 festivities with their EA Play event held this year at the Hollywood Palladium in sunny California. The PS Nation team was there to see event live with all of the upcoming game reveals and updates we’d expect from EA. Stay tuned to PS Nation for hands-on reviews of some of the games that were on display for EA’s interactive product launch. If you missed the live cast of the event, worry not, here is a wrap-up of everything that was revealed during the show.

Shortly after the New England Patriots themed drumline performance (no Nick Cannon sightings), EA started off with an entry from their stable of sports franchises with Madden 18. Showing off some new footage from the in-game engine, the team touted the latest entry of gameplay titled Longshot. This is the first ever entry into a career driven story mode for the franchise.

Next up was EA’s premier multiplayer powerhouse Battlefield 1. Andrew Gulotta, producer at DICE, reinforced the team’s dedication to a focus on the community gaming environment. And what better way to reinforce those sentiments than with the reveal of new night maps set to debut this summer with the Prise De Tahure map coming in July. In addition the next expansion coming in September to Battlefield 1 was also revealed, titled In the Name of the Tsar. This will include a move eastward and introduce the Russian army to the battlefield with six new maps including new vehicles, weapons, cavalry and the infamous Women’s Battalion of Death. The Lupkow Pass map will be featured at EA Play and a new competitive player experience was teased to be revealed at Gamescom in August.

Jumping back into the sportsball arena, EA displayed some new details about FIFA 18. Most notably were new features such as “real player motion technology” with motion capture data driven by non-other than pitch superstar Ronaldo himself. After a brief interlude with the Men in Blazers crew, EA teased what is up next for Alex Hunter in his football career with The Journey: Hunter Returns.

Next up was sure to please the gearheads in the crowd. Need for Speed Payback coming in November was showcased with a new, unique and diverse open world driving experience. Gameplay footage included the Highway Heist mission which showed off the spectacular crashes as well as two of the three main characters with seamless transition between them during the story mission. Also mentioned was a new, deeper way to customize your vehicle along with car relics. These were old cars from the past that you can upgrade and tune through a pseudo restoration process. Read up on Emrah’s impressions with his hands on review right here.

Probably one of the more exciting announcements was the collaboration between EA and Hazelight Studios which will be bringing A Way Out to gamers in early 2018. The brainchild of Josef Fares, who also created Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons, features an extremely unique take on a game – persistent, split screen co-op gameplay. The game features the story of two strangers looking to partner up and breakout of a prison and the adventure that ensues. This will definitely be one to keep an eye out for as the release approaches.

Perhaps the shortest reveal of any game was the teaser EA dropped for the upcoming game Anthem from Bioware. From the short clip that was shown, it appears to be a futuristic shooter with some type of exosuit, large scary beasts and a giant wall that was built to keep them out. More was said to be revealed at the Xbox E3 event.

Jumping back into the sports world, EA gave everyone a look at the upcoming NBA LIVE 18. The latest addition to the series includes The One game mode for playing multiple career paths for both the traditional on court experience and through the more urban street ball leagues. Everyone can look forward to a free demo coming in August.

EA also touched upon their charity driven initiative which was able to donate a massive $1M to three very different but important charities all thanks to the gaming community. The participation of players across 9 in-game events fueled the success of the contribution. Because of this, EA is giving back to the players with free access to designated titles through EA Origins, EA Access and free trials on PlayStation 4.

And last but not least was the mic drop moment, the jaw dropping, Star Wars Battlefront II. The feature was headlined by the equally gorgeous Janina Gavankar, a close friend to the PS Nation podcast crew. EA made sure they addressed the concerns and feedback of the players by including the most asked about component, a true story mode for the Battlefront sequel. The new entry will include three times the content of the first game including new character classes, weapons, customizations and better progression throughout the story. In addition, all post-launch DLC content will be available through seasonal releases which includes all new heroes, vehicles, weapons and maps and everything will be FREE. This includes the playable heroes Finn and Captain Phasma from The Force Awakens which will be available this holiday season. Be sure to pre-order for early beta access!